Individuals wishing to use near field communication must own a compatible device or purchase an individual SIM card or microSD card with an NFC chip installed on it. NFC must be embedded in the smartphone or installed via a SIM or microSD card for the phone to interact with other NFC devices and tags. As the technology spreads, more manufactures are building NFC chips into their smartphones.

Those with NFC compatible smartphones can activate a service such as Google Wallet that comes pre-installed on the smartphone. Swiping through the menus lets a user select a previously used payment method, enter a new payment method, or change contactless payment settings.

Other services have downloadable apps, such as PayPal’s mobile app for smartphones, and offer NFC payments as an option within the program. Bumping two smartphones together can transfer money from one user account to another.

For those who don’t have NFC compatible phones but wish to use the services, other options are available. Purchasing a SIM card or a microSD card with the NFC chip implanted on it allows the user to plug it into their phone and access NFC technologies. Once installed, the smartphone functions as any other NFC compatible device. If the SIM or microSD card is removed, however, the user can no longer access NFC technologies.

Users who own NFC compatible devices or install NFC on their smartphones should always use a password to lock and protect the smartphone. In the event that the phone is lost or stolen, having a password on the smartphone prevents a thief from unlocking the phone and using services such as Google Wallet to purchase items or send money from the owner’s PayPal account the the thief’s own account.

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